No surprise here: Americans underestimate the amount of water they use by 90%.

Most underestimate their own “water footprint,” and are unaware of how water impacts their everyday lives. Check out the study. You may find fun facts to share in your community to raise awareness of this precious resource.

An article in the December issue of Municipal Water & Sewer magazine included a link to a study on how unaware Americans are of water consumption. We’ve referred to this fact several times over the years. As Alan Meyer is known for saying, “as long as the toilet flushes and the water runs clear, there isn’t a problem.” Here are some interesting points made from the research. You may want to share these with the citizens of your community to raise awareness:

• Most people think they use about 100 gallons of water a day. The actual number is more like 2,000 gallons on average for all use.
• Almost 90 million Americans believe it takes no water at all to make a pair of jeans. In reality, a fresh pair of jeans requires around 2,600 gallons to make.
• It takes 713 gallons of water to make a new cotton T-shirt to pair with those jeans. Americans believe it takes only 136.
• Americans believe it takes 158 gallons of water to produce a smartphone, whereas it is more than 3,400.

While 89% of Americans are willing to try at least one new eco-friendly habit, they find it harder to put that into practice. The most wasteful thing people do is leave the water running when they brush their teeth. Assuming people brush their teeth twice a day, this wastes three gallons of water a day per person, or 149.9 million gallons of water every day. That’s a campaign for your community! Turn off the water while you brush!